An Introduction to Acupuncture at Thetis

Are you scared of needles and can’t ever imagine going for an acupuncture treatment? Are you worried it will be painful or do you think it’s just some crazy voodoo medicine?

All of these questions and thoughts are normal for someone who’s never been to see an Acupuncturist. Acupuncture is a form of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) dating back thousands of years. It involves the use of stainless steel single use needles which are inserted into different areas on the body. The needles are about the width of a strand of your hair and nothing like the “scary” needles you’d see at your Doctor’s office or in a hospital. The specific acupuncture points chosen on the body are used to increase blood circulation, stimulate nerve endings, and ultimately bring your body back into balance.

Typically when people think of acupuncture, they think of it being used for pain relief. This makes up a very large area of practice for us but we also use acupuncture to treat digestive, sleep, menstrual, urinary, and respiratory problems, as well as addictions, common cold and so much more. Although in practice we know this list falls short, the World Health Organization lists a variety of conditions for which acupuncture has been scientifically proven to help.

Acupuncture is relatively painless; however, every individual will experience something different. Some people may experience radiating sensations, heat, pressure, heaviness, or tingling at the needle insertion site, while others may feel nothing at that moment. For those individuals who are scared of needles and worried that it will be painful, there is really nothing to fear. Acupuncture relaxes the nervous system and many patients find they will drift off to sleep during their treatment session.

Acupuncture is not limited to just needles, we offer other techniques such as cupping (you might recall the pictures of Michael Phelps from the summer Olympics), gua sha (translated as “skin scraping”), electro acupuncture (yes, we can put an electric current through those needles), tuina (Chinese massage), ear seeds, moxibustion, and magnet therapy to list a few.

If you are interested in finding out more about acupuncture, we welcome you to visit us at the clinic for a free 20 min consultation or to book in for a full appointment. ​Samantha Bodie-Clark, B.Sc., R.Ac.